1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to cardboard containers. More particularly the invention is directed to a unique cardboard container which can be easily opened without tools and which, when opened, collapses and lies flat without further handling to permit ready access to the container contents. Besides providing easy and complete access to its contents, the motivation to provide a collapsible container further resides in the desirability of a flat container configuration which can be easily recycled or readily disposed of after its contents have been removed without taking up unnecessary space in a solid waste receptacle. Although the container of the present invention has many different applications, it is described herein primarily as used for the containment of vinyl floor tiles.
2. Description of the Related Art
U.S. Pat. No. 5,671,883 to Philips dated Sep. 30, 1997 discloses a paperboard container that has high stacking strength but also has structural elements incorporated therein in order to permit collapsing of the container, after use, to a flat configuration for subsequent retrieval and recycling. More particularly the container disclosed by Philips incorporates weakened lines in two of its opposing endwalls. This feature permits a portion of the endwalls, upon the application of an outward force by the customer, to be disengaged from the rest of the assembled container and then, upon further handling by the customer, to cause the container to lie flat. Unlike the container disclosed by Philips, the present invention does not utilize adhesively-secured bottom or top corners. As a result, upon the opening of the top of the container along lines of weakness displaced therein, the remainder of the container of the present invention readily collapses into a flat configuration without the need for further handling or cutting of any sort.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,355,089 to Champlin dated Nov. 28, 1967 discloses a box construction formed from a fibrous material and capable of having the top panel thereof readily opened to facilitate access to the contents of the box. The top panel is provided with a plurality of sections which are separated from one another by a plurality of tear scores radiating from near the center of the top of the box to the top corners thereof. In this manner the top of the box can be easily opened; however, unlike the box of the present invention, it cannot be quickly and readily collapsed into a flat configuration due to its design and the use of adhesive to secure the side panels and bottom of the container together.
The invention of Whitney (U.S. Pat. No. 3,447,735) dated Jun. 3, 1969 also discloses an easy-opening container. Like the invention of Champlin, the disclosure of Whitney uses lines of weakness in the top panel of the container. These perforated lines emanate from near the center of the top panel and extend outwards to each of the top four comers of the container. Further like the box of Champlin, but unlike the present invention, the design of the container of Whitney does not permit the container, after use, to be readily collapsed into a flat configuration, in part due to the presence of glued flaps which form and secure the corners of the container.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,542,569 to Farquhar dated Nov. 24, 1970 discloses a carton for holding and displaying a food product. Upon unfastening the top wall and removing the food product the walls of the carton are permitted to fall outwardly and the resulting structure defines a serving tray for the food product. The carton of Farquhar requires that the contents of the carton be removed before it can be unfolded and lay flat. This is due to the presence of overlapped panels in the structure of the carton which engage the food product within the carton. Such food product thus holds the overlapped panels in place and the overlapped panels, secured in such a manner, aid in defining the corners of the carton. In contrast, in the present invention, the container readily collapses without the contents of the container having to be removed first.
Accordingly, the present invention discloses an easy-opening collapsible container of a kind not known in the prior art.
The cardboard or paperboard containers of the prior art are generally not designed to permit the user to easily collapse the container once the top of the container is opened. The reasons for this are varied. In some instances this was not a desirable feature because the container itself was relied upon to hold or secure the contents of the container when the top was opened. In other instances the container was intended to function as a means for displaying the contents of the container such as in a retail store environment. In those few instances where a collapsible container was desired, the collapsible feature was designed not to function unless and until the contents of the container were removed first. In contrast, the container of the present invention collapses without the contents having to be removed. Thus in the present invention, the top wall of the container is readily opened by hand by means of a fingerhole from which lines of weakness, such as perforations, emanate radially to each of the four comers of the top wall. Upon disassociating each of the four triangular sections which make-up the top wall from each other, the container freely collapses into a flat configuration without any further handling by the user. No cutting instruments of any kind are required to open the top wall of the container. This is of particular importance when opening a container of vinyl floor covering whose surface can be easily marred or scratched by a sharp instrument. Neither is a cutting instrument needed to cut the remnants of the opened container in any fashion in order to cause the remnants of the container to lay flat when opened. This is a significant advantage over other prior art containers. When the contents of a container are heavy and tightly packed together with little room between the contents and the vertical walls of the container, such as in the case of vinyl floor covering tiles, removing the tiles from a prior art container whose top is opened but whose side, front and rear walls remain upright and intact is cumbersome and difficult. With the container of the present invention this problem is solved in that the front, rear and side walls of the container collapse upon the opening of the top wall thus affording ready access to the floor tiles without having to lift them out of the container. Another advantage of the present invention is that the container, when opened, lies flat and is therefore amenable to recycling or disposal in a solid waste receptacle without taking up a significant volume of apace within the receptacle.
Thus, it is one of the objects of this invention to provide a container which is not beset with the aforementioned shortcomings associated with the prior art containers.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a cardboard or paperboard container which is easily collapsible into a flat configuration when its top wall is opened without the need for cutting or any further handling by the user.
It is a still further object of the present invention to provide a container which can be easily opened without the need for a sharp instrument or a cutting tool.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a container which can be easily collapsed into a flat configuration while the contents of the container remain in the container.
In accordance with the foregoing objects, a new container is disclosed. Briefly stated, the invention is practiced by forming the container from a blank of fibrous sheet material such as corrugated cardboard, paperboard, fiberboard or similar material. The container when formed has a top wall, a bottom wall, two side walls, a front wall and a rear wall. The front wall, rear wall and the two sidewalls are foldably connected to the bottom wall. The top wall is foldably connected to the rear wall. Two side extension flaps and one front extension flap are foldably connected to the top wall. These three extension flaps are adhesively secured to the two side walls and the front wall when the container is constructed. Importantly, this is the only adhesive or other securing means used in the construction of the container. A plurality of lines of weakness are provided within the top wall of the container. In the preferred embodiment, four lines of weakness are provided, each line of weakness extending diagonally from a fingerhole located in or near the center of the top wall to each of the four comers of the top wall. The lines of weakness serve as severance lines when an upward force is exerted on the top wall. when such a force is applied the top wall disassociates into four triangular sections which then, along with the side, front and rear walls to which they are attached, are permitted to freely fall outwards and away from the contents of the container. Thus, the contents of the container can be easily accessed and the container itself is now in a flat configuration lending itself to ready recycling or other form of disposal once the contents of the container have been consumed.
Further objects and advantages will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art and a better understanding of the present invention may be had by reference to the following detailed description taken in connection with the following drawings.